Tenants’ rights law upheld in Supreme Court

The State Supreme Court upheld a New York City law allowing tenants to sue landlords who use intimidation to push them out, according to a court filing made Wednesday. The Tenant Protection Act allows judges to hand down civil penalties between $1,000 and $5,000 against landlords who threaten tenants or cut off necessary services in an effort to hustle them out. Judge Eileen Rakower, who issued the ruling, said in her statement that the law is essential for tenant safety and comfort and that the Tenant Protection Act is a “rational legislative response to what the City Council has determined is the potential for a growing problem of tenant harassment in New York City.”